Module 2: Lesson 1

CULTURE IN MORAL BEHAVIOR

 The beginning of human
civilization is a proper reference
point in treating the interesting
subject of culture.
 A human beings adaptation to
their society, conformity to the culture
of their time, and their education
have work alongside each other
putting their present status.
Culture

It is derived from the Latin word

cultura or cultus which means care or
cultivation. Culture is analogous to
caring for an infant. Because an
infant has prolonged dependency,
he/she has to be taken care by
people around him/her.
 Culture has been defined as all
modes of thought, behavior, and
production that are handed down
from one generation to the next by
means of communicative interaction
rather than by genetic transmission.
 Culture as cultivation implies
that every human being is a potential
member of his/her own social group.
He/She is endowed with certain
innately useful qualities.
 However, he/she cannot
develop these inborn talents
without the help of other people.
 It is an indelible manifestation of
human existence that shows how far a
human being has gone in the course
of time and how much he/she has
learned.
 The growth of culture anywhere
at any given time is a result of an
individual’s reaction to the several
stimuli that motivates his/her way of
thinking and challenge his/her mode
of living. Without him/her culture will
be at a standstill.
Origin of Culture

Anthropologists believe that

culture is a product of human
evolution. Humans devised a
common way of classifying
experiences and transmitting them
symbolically.
 Since these experiences were
learned and transmitted, it then
developed distinctly, independent
from biological evolutions. Hence, a
person may transmit beliefs, values,
norms or way of life to another person
even if they are not related by blood.
 This view of culture argues that
people from different places develop
distinct cultures. However, elements
of a culture can be transmitted from
one society to another.
 Being dynamic, culture can be
taught and learned, making it
potentially rapid form of adaptation
to changes in the human
environment.
 Elements of Culture

➢ Material Culture
➢ Non-material Culture
Material Culture

It includes the physical objects a

society produces. These are tools,
pieces of furniture, clothing,
automobiles, and computer systems,
to name a few.
 Awareness of these kinds of
objects created and how people
use them brings about greater
understanding of culture of society.
Non-material Culture

It consist of elements termed

norms, values, belief, and language
shared by the members of a society.
Non-material culture is considered as
the carriers of culture.
 Elements of Non-material Culture

➢ Language
➢ Beliefs
➢ Values
➢ Norms
Language

The most defining characteristics

of the human being is the ability to
develop and use highly complex
systems of symbols like language.
 A symbol, as sociologist says, is
the very foundation of culture. The
essence of culture is the sharing of
meanings among members of the
society.
 Unless one shares the language
of culture, one cannot participate in
it. Languages influences people’s way
of perceiving, behaving and feeling,
thus, tends to define and shape the
world around them.
 It is through language that ideas,
values, beliefs and knowledge are
transmitted, expressed and shared.
Belief

These are ideas that people hold

about any part of the total reality
surrounding them. It shows how
people see reality.
 The subject of human beliefs
may be infinite and may include
ideas concerning the individual, other
people, and any aspects of the
biological, physical, social, and
supernatural world, be it primitive or
scientific.
Values

These are the shared ideas

about desirable goals. These are
person’s ideas about worth and
desirability or an abstract of what is
important and worthwhile.
 Values makes up human
judgments of what is moral and
immoral, good and bad, right or
wrong, beautiful and ugly, and so on.
Norms

These are shared rules of

conduct that specify how people
should ought to think and act.
Norms is simply defined as specific
rules of behavior.
 Types of Norms

➢ Mores
➢ Folkways
➢ Laws
Mores

These are norms associated with

strong ideas of right and wrong.
Mores are standard of conduct that
are highly respected and valued by
the group and their fulfillment is felt
to be necessary and vital to group
welfare.
 They are considered essential to
group’s existence and accordingly,
the group demands that they be
followed without question. They
represent obligatory behavior
because their infractions result in
punishments, formal or informal.
Folkways

These are norms that simply the

customary, normal and habitual ways
a group does things. These customary
ways are accumulated and become
repetitive patterns of behavior, which
tends to become permanent
traditions.
Laws

These are often referred to as

formal norms. They are rules that are
enforced and sanctioned by the
authority of the government.
 Characteristics of Culture

➢ Culture is learned
➢ Culture is shared
➢ Culture is cumulative
➢ Culture is dynamic
➢ Culture is diverse
 Functions of Culture

The importance of culture

cannot be overemphasized.
Although human beings possess
instinct, they generally rely on their
culture in order to survive. Next to this,
are some functions of culture.
➢ Culture helps people adapt to the
demand of the surrounding physical
environment.

➢ Culture compensates for many

human physical limitations.
➢ Culture provides ways and means
to regulate human collective
existence.

➢ Culture prescribes behavioral

patter insides ways and means to
regulate human.
Cultural Relativism

The concept refers to the notion

that each culture should be
evaluated according to its own merits
and standards rather than from the
standpoint or bases of a different
culture.
 In other words, norms, values,
and beliefs should be judged only
from the viewpoint of the culture
where they belong.
 The goal of cultural relativism is to
promote understanding of cultural
practices that are not typically part of
one’s own culture.
 Using the perspective of cultural
relativism, it leads to the view that no
particular culture is superior than
another culture when compared to
systems of morality, law, politics, and
so on.
 It is a concept that cultural norms
and values derive their meaning
within a specific social context.
 Modes of Acquiring Culture

➢ Imitation
➢ Indoctrination
➢ Conditioning
➢ Acculturation
➢ Amalgamation
Imitation

It is human action by which one

tends to duplicate more or less
exactly the behaviors of others.
Indoctrination

This takes the form of formal

teaching or training which may
happen anywhere. The formal
teaching takes into account the
cultural components of society where
the learning individuals lives.
Conditioning

Through norms prevailing in one’s

social and cultural milieu and through
the process of conditioning, the
individual acquires certain patterns of
beliefs, values, and behavior.
Acculturation

It is a process by which societies

with different cultures are modified
through fairly close and long
continued contact.
Amalgamation

It is the intermarriage of persons

coming from different cultural groups
resulting in some kind of biological
fusion.